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THE IMPRECATORY PSALMS and CHRISTIAN ETHICS by John N ABSTRACT THE IMPRECATORY PSALMS AND CHRISTIAN ETHICS by John N. Day [© 2000, by John N. Day, cited with permission] Dallas Theological Seminary Readers: Prof. Don Glenn, Dr. Rick Taylor, Dr. W. Hall Harris III In this dissertation, I attempt plausibly to demonstrate that the utterance of imprecations (including the appeal for divine vengeance) against the recalcitrant enemies of God and his people—as is found in the Imprecatory Psalms—is consistent with the ethics of the Old Testament and finds corresponding (albeit somewhat lessened) echo in the New. This thesis is rooted (1) in the establishment of the psalms’ theology of imprecation in the very essence of the Torah—especially seen in the promise of divine vengeance expressed in the Song of Moses, the principle of divine justice outlined in the lex talionis, and the assurance of divine cursing as well as blessing articulated in the inaugural covenant of God with his people; and (2) in the presence of this theology carried, in essence, unchanged through to the end of the Christian Canon, and likewise utilized as the foundation for the infrequent imprecations in the New Testament. There is indeed a degree of difference in the progress of the testaments, but it is a difference in degree not a difference in kind. Thus, it is argued that whereas “love and blessing” is the dominant tone and characteristic ethic of the believer of both testaments, “cursing and calling for divine vengeance” is the believer’s extreme ethic—legitimately utilized in extreme circumstances, against sustained injustice, hardened enmity, and gross oppression. This thesis is developed in four discrete sections: (1) an evaluation of the principal solutions proffered with regard to the Imprecatory Psalms and Christian ethics; (2) an investigation into the broader ancient Near Eastern practice of imprecation; (3) an exploration of the three harshest psalms of imprecation (Pss 58, 137, 109) and the theological foundations upon which their cries were uttered; and (4) an examination of the apparently contradictory statements of the New Testament (“love your enemies” and “bless and curse not”) coupled with the continued presence of imprecations. THE IMPRECATORY PSALMS AND CHRISTIAN ETHICS _______________________ A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Department of Old Testament Studies Dallas Theological Seminary _______________________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy [© 2000, by John N. Day, cited with permission] _______________________ by John N. Day August 2001 Accepted by the Faculty of the Dallas Theological Seminary in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy. Examining Committee ____________________________________ ____________________________________ ____________________________________ To my beloved wife, Lorri and our dear children Tiffanie, Hannah, and JohnEzra TABLE OF CONTENTS ABBREVIATIONS . vii Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION . 1 Facing the Problem The Breadth of Definition The Stigma of Vengeance Narrowing the Field The Method of Approach 2. UNSATISFACTORY SOLUTIONS . 25 Evil Emotions Not to Be Expressed To Be Expressed and Relinquished Old Covenant Morality Inferior Morality Differing Dispensations Songs of Christ Summary iv 3. THE CULTURAL CONTEXT OF THE CURSE . 62 The Function of Imprecation in the Ancient Near East Treaty Curses Inscriptional Curses Incantations to Undo Curses The Power of the Curse 4. THE HARSHEST PSALMS OF IMPRECATION . 85 Psalm 58 Curse Against a Societal Enemy Theological Foundation Psalm 137 Curse Against a National Enemy Theological Foundation Psalm 109 Curse Against a Personal Enemy Theological Foundation 5. COLLIDING WITH THE NEW TESTAMENT . 143 Apparent Contradictions “Love Your Enemies” “Bless, and Curse Not” v Instances of Imprecation Christ The Apostles The Saints in Heaven Conclusion 6. CONCLUSION . 176 Appendices A. WOE AND CURSE . 186 B. THE TEXT OF DEUT 32:43 . 191 C. COALS OF FIRE IN ROM 12:19-20 . 197 BIBLIOGRAPHY . 206 vi ABBREVIATIONS AER American Ecclesiastical Review ANET J. B. Pritchard (ed.), Ancient Near Eastern Texts, 3d ed BDB F. Brown, S. R. Driver, and C. A. Briggs, Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament BECNT Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament BHS Biblia hebraica stuttgartensia Bib Biblica BSac Bibliotheca Sacra BZAW Beihefte zur ZAW CBQ Catholic Biblical Quarterly DCH D. J. A. Clines (ed.), Dictionary of Classical Hebrew ExpTim Expository Times FN Filologia Neotestamentaria GKC Gesenius’ Hebrew Grammar, ed. E. Kautzsch, tr. A. E. Cowley, 2d ed HALOT L. Koehler and W. Baumgartner, Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, Revised ed HUCA Hebrew Union College Annual ICC International Critical Commentary vii JAOS Journal of the American Oriental Society JB A. Jones (ed.), Jerusalem Bible JBL Journal of Biblical Literature JETS Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society JNES Journal of Near Eastern Studies JNSL Journal of Northwest Semitic Languages JQR Jewish Quarterly Review JSNTSup Journal for the Study of the New Testament—Supplement Series JTS Journal of Theological Studies KJV King James Bible NEB New English Bible NICNT New International Commentary on the New Testament NICOT New International Commentary on the Old Testament NIDOTTE W. van Gemeren (ed.), New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis NIGTC New International Greek Testament Commentary NIV New International Version NRSV New Revised Standard Version NTS New Testament Studies OTL Old Testament Library PTR Princeton Theological Review RB Revue biblique viii RevQ Revue de Qumran RTR Reformed Theological Review TDNT G. Kittel and G. Friedrich (eds.), Theological Dictionary of the New Testament TDOT G. J. Botterweck and H. Ringgren (eds.), Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament TEV Today’s English Version TOTC Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries TNTC Tyndale New Testament Commentaries TWOT R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., and B. K. Waltke (eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament TynBul Tyndale Bulletin VT Vetus Testamentum WBC Word Biblical Commentary WTJ Westminster Theological Journal ZAW Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft ix CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Facing the Problem There is hardly an area of biblical theology more troublesome to the Christian conscience than that expressed in the so-called Imprecatory Psalms—those psalms whose characterizing element is the desire for God’s just vengeance to fall upon his and his people’s enemies, including the use of more formal curses or imprecations. These psalms naturally evoke a reaction of revulsion to Christians schooled in the “law of Christ”; the venom these psalms exude collides abrasively with their sweeter instincts. For are not Christians called to “love your enemies” (Matt 5:44), to “bless and not curse” (Rom 12:14)? How, then, can such calls for the barbaric “dashing of infants against the rocks” (Ps 137:9), the “bathing of feet in the blood of the wicked” (Ps 58:10), the “curse passed down to the 1 offender’s children” (Ps 109:10-15) be justified? Are the Imprecatory Psalms merely a way of venting one’s rage without really meaning it? Has the morality of Scripture evolved? Or is cursing enemies the Old Testament way and loving enemies the New Testament way? And is there any legitimate echo of the substance of these psalms in the New Testament? 1 Partly based upon a negative reaction to the invectives hurled against their enemies by the psalmists, Gunkel asserts: “the opinion that the Old Testament is a safe guide to true religion and morality cannot any longer be maintained.” Hermann Gunkel, What Remains of the Old Testament and Other Essays, trans. A. K. Dallas (London: George Allen & Unwin, 1928), 16. 1 2 There have been a few modern treatments of the Imprecatory Psalms vis-à-vis their relation to biblical theology and the New Testament. However these treatments have been, in large measure, cursory, and the proposed solutions have been, in my view, 2 theologically inadequate. The Imprecatory Psalms have been unsatisfactorily explained 3 chiefly as expressing (1) evil emotions—whether to be suppressed or expressed (e.g., Lewis, 4 Brueggemann ), (2) a morality consonant with the Old Covenant but inconsistent with the 5 6 New (e.g., Zuck, Laney ), or (3) words appropriately uttered solely from the lips of Christ, 7 and consequently only by his followers through him and his cross (e.g., Adams, 8 Bonhoeffer ). 2 The reasons for their respective inadequacy will be dealt with below. Chiefly and summarily, a theologically adequate reconciliation of the Imprecatory Psalms with Christian ethics must deal fairly with the entirety of scriptural revelation. 3 C. S. Lewis, Reflections on the Psalms (New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1958). Idem, Christian Reflections, ed. Walter Hooper (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1967). 4 Walter Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms: A Theological Commentary (Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1984). Idem, Praying the Psalms (Winona, MN: Saint Mary’s Press, 1986). 5 Roy Ben Zuck, “The Problem of the Imprecatory Psalms” (Th.M. thesis, Dallas Theological Seminary, 1957). 6 J. Carl Laney, “A Fresh Look at the Imprecatory Psalms,” BSac 138 (1981): 35-45. 7 James E. Adams, War Psalms of the Prince of Peace: Lessons from the Imprecatory Psalms (Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Company, 1991). 8 Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “A Bonhoeffer Sermon,” trans. Daniel Bloesch, ed. F. Burton Nelson, Theology
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